Jasmine Sim is poetry in motion in the photo studio. The 26-year-old model-turned-actress and Best Newcomer at this year's Star Awards is working nine black dresses like a pro. Because she is a pro. She modeled extensively for Love, Bonito, among many others, and 8days.sg saw her in action at one of these shoots, where we witnessed what we call her OOTD dance . Basically, she moves non-stop from one pose to another in a fluid way, instead of posing and stopping, then posing again. It all ends up looking like a fascinating dance with slight turns of the body, and slight movements of limb and clothes. For me, it feels more natural to keep moving,” she tells us.

Today, she's in our studio making nine dresses designed by Raffles Design Institute (Singapore) fashion students look like a million bucks (but don't worry, they're actually a very affordable $59 to $79. The initiative is a cool support-local collab between Raffles Design Institute (Singapore) and Metro, where students were challenged to create a classic LBD (Little Black Dress), albeit with their own little interesting twists and turns. You can pre-order your fave pieces from the Raffles Design Institute x Metro - Little Black Dress collection here. After the pre-order period, the price of the dresses will go up slightly (from $59 to $79, and from $79 to $109). You can also check out the dresses in store at Metro Paragon from July 25.

As you can see from our pics, there are myriad ways to style up or style down an LBD, and after that, there are even more ways to pose up a storm and snap an #OOTD or 10. We offer 18 pics with 18 ideas courtesy of No. 1 poser Jasmine Sim, and 18 tips on how to be an #OOTD queen like Jas.

You and your Instagram feed can thank us later. Cheers!

It’s not that easy to look cool and brooding in photos. Even seasoned poser Jasmine has trouble sometimes. “If you really want to get a serious-looking photo, try to control yourself and not laugh, and do a slight smile inside. It actually doesn’t show when you do a slight smile, but it helps you to feel less b****y.”

Jasmine is wearing the A-line Ribbon Dress ($59 pre-order; regular price $79) with adjustable ribbon at shoulder. Earrings, necklaces, bracelets and boots from Metro. Hat, stylist’s own.

“Not everyone can keep a straight face for the camera without laughing at themselves. I think smiling is easier. Or you could just laugh and get whoever is taking the photo to snap, snap, snap. When I first started modelling, I couldn’t really smile for the camera, I felt very stiff. So it helps to just laugh out loud for real.”

A-line Ribbon Dress ($59 pre-order; regular price $79).

“Actually, I feel shy when asking other people to help me take photos. For work, it’s different but if it’s a friend, I may feel a bit paiseh. It’s like, you’re looking at me, and I’m trying not to blink, and then your expression ends up looking a bit awkward. So just avoid eye contact and look away. (Laughs) I find that’s nicer and more candid anyway. Pretend you’re thinking about something and look far away. It feels less weird and the photo looks more accidental and less posed.”

Asymmetrical Dress with Contrast Stitching Detail ($59 pre-order; regular price $79) with cap sleeves, A-line silhouette, asymmetrical hem and contrast top-stitching. Headband, pearl necklaces and shoes from Metro. Socks, stylist’s own.

“Don’t look straight into the camera. It’s awkward to stare down the camera. Look away, or look far, and think about something, anything.”

Asymmetrical Dress with Contrast Stitching Detail ($59 pre-order; regular price $79).

“Some of the photographers have told me to just try inhaling and exhaling. It gives you a different posture and vibe. So just… breathe. For me, an OOTD is about trying different things. Just keep trying and trying until you get that shot.”

Midi Ruffled Organza Dress ($59 pre-order; regular price $79) with peekaboo sleeve detail and ruffled organza hem. Earrings and necklace from Metro. Sneakers, stylist’s own.

Okay, we made up that phrase — that’s not what she calls it. But it’s definitely a thing. We’ve seen Jasmine in action in front of the cam at Love, Bonito shoots and at this shoot for 8 days, and her method of non-stop moving from pose to pose is definitely something to try. “For me, it’s more natural to keep moving,” she tells us. “If I stay still for too long, I start looking very stiff. Also, if you keep moving, you can get shots you can’t get if you’re still, like a skirt twirling. You can get accidental shots which look great ’cos of the movement. But if you keep moving, the photos can end up blurry, so one way is get whoever’s taking the photo to spam burst shots, then go through the photos and find the ones you like.”

Midi Ruffled Organza Dress ($59 pre-order; regular price $79).

This is a weird one, but worth a shot, hur, hur. Jasmine tells us, “I’ve heard that you can take a video and then go through the video to find a still shot that you like, and take a screen shot. I guess that way, it looks more natural, 'cos you’re basically just moving around and not trying so hard to pose.”

Capped Sleeves Ruched Dress ($59 pre-order; regular price $79) with ruched details at waist. Sunglasses and bangle from Metro. Boots, stylist’s own.

“I’m a very shy person with my friends — I don’t wanna bother people to take photos for me! But I like to pose and take photos. (Laughs) So I prefer to use a self-timer and take my own photos. I look for nice places where there’s not that many people, like if I go for a casting call and find a nice area. I prop my camera somewhere or sync my camera to my phone so I can control the shot using the timer. I’ve tried weird ways of propping my camera up and it’s fallen a few times, so be careful if you try this!”

Capped Sleeves Ruched Dress ($59 pre-order; regular price $79).

“Most people don’t have a symmetrical face — even myself — so when you’re doing face on shots, the [lack of symmetry] will be more obvious. Angling your face or taking side profile shots will give the illusion of a more symmetrical face.”

Midi Dress with organza detail at waist and hem ($59 pre-order; regular price $79). Necklace, bracelet and rings from Metro. Boots, stylist’s own.​​​​​​​

“At the same time, you don’t want all your shots to be from the same angle. Like every photo is the left side of your face. Once, I looked at my Instagram feed and realised my face was the same angle all the time! It’s ’cos you’re used to taking photos a certain way. So variety is good, so that your feed looks more interesting. Try different angles and poses, and taking the shots from different perspectives.”

Midi Dress with organza detail at waist and hem ($59 pre-order; regular price $79).

Yes, we know it’s an #OOTD, but sometimes, you want an #MOTD or a close-up of your accessories or bag. Says Jasmine, “I don’t always show the whole outfit. Again, variety — you don’t want your feed to be all wide shots. Sometimes, you want to draw attention to a certain thing, like your skirt or your accessories, so you can try and focus on that. With a whole outfit shot, some things are lost ’cos it’s so wide. Sometimes, you can take the same outfit and do close-ups of your accessories or make-up, or focus on certain items of clothing, and also do wide shots to see whole outfit. It all depends on what you wanna show. Like if you’re not wearing nice shoes sometimes, then don’t do a wide shot. And certain backgrounds look nice in more close-up shots, ’cos maybe the nice part of background is only limited to a small area.”

Wave Applique Dress ($59 pre-order; regular price $79). Earrings from Metro. Sunglasses, stylist’s own.

“I’m more of a feeling person, so while I plan my OOTD shoots sometimes, at other times, it can be very random. Like I’d go to a place and feel like it’s nice, and just get someone to help me take a shot. Asking strangers to help with photos is fine, ’cos if it’s not good, then don’t post lor! (Laughs) Anyway, sometimes you’re just taking photos for memories, to capture the moment, and it doesn’t have to be perfect. And you can always edit it, I guess! (Laughs)

Wave Applique Dress ($59 pre-order; regular price $79).

“It’s okay to put filters on your OOTD if you’re going for a certain vibe, or if your feed has a certain look. For me, I don’t have a certain feed look, so I don’t care that much about the DI, but I do put filters on my photos and adjust colours. If I’m feeling lazy, I’ll just slap on a grainy filter, then post it. I don’t like to do so much work. (Laughs) But it definitely helps to edit your photos ’cos if you just post the raw photo, the colours don’t pop or the photo looks really flat. Editing would help to bring out things you wanna draw attention to. But if you’re lazy, then don’t DI lah. It’s okay — who cares? (Laughs) But if you want something more polished and pretty, then DI would help.”

V-neck dress with detachable pleated sash ($59 pre-order; regular price $79). Earrings, necklace and bangle from Metro. Beret and shoes, stylist’s own.

“For studio shoots, I take one step in front and one step behind [continuously, like walking back and forth on the spot], ’cos there’s no space, but if you’re outdoors and have more space, you can keep walking and ask the photographer to walk with you. You can look at the camera or look away, and the photos will look natural and dynamic with a lot of movement. Different things work for different outfits as well, so just keep trying till you get a good shot.”

V-neck dress with detachable pleated sash ($59 pre-order; regular price $79).

“Sometimes, I feel silly or embarrassed in front of my friends, ’cos some of them are like, ‘Aiyah, why every day OOTD!’” (Laughs) That’s why I take my own photos! Even when people walk past, I get embarrassed, like, they’re going to be judging me. (Laughs) But actually, you feel silly but maybe no one cares. Just ignore them and laugh about it.”

V-neck Capped Sleeve Dress ($59 pre-order; regular price $79) with side pockets. Earrings, necklace and slip-ons from Metro.

What to do with your hands and legs? “If you have pockets, put your hands in your pockets,” advises Jasmine. “Most people are very tense, and don’t know where to put their hands or how to position their legs. Pockets give you something to do with your hands, or you can put them on your waist to create a different shape. It’s a good idea to create shapes. Making a ‘hole’ with your arms on your waist makes your pic look interesting, and you can also play around with other shapes and angles. I mean, putting your arms by your side and standing straight can be a look too. It all depends on what you’re wearing, and what you wanna emphasise. Just have fun, I guess! For legs, put one leg in front of the other to create shapes, so you don’t look like a block.”

V-neck Capped Sleeve Dress ($59 pre-order; regular price $79) with side pockets.

“You can play with the things around you as well. Holding your bag or a coffee cup can work if you want something to do with your hands, but you don’t wanna look too posey as well. People can get too posey with props. I like it when there is some foreground — like an object, such as part of a plant in front of you to add some dimension. The key is to play around with interesting things and different effects. Taking photos and OOTDs is about playing around with what you have and trying different things, so that things don’t get boring and your photos don’t look like everyone else’s.

Two-piece Shirt Dress ($79 pre-order; regular price $109), comes with separate piece for multiple looks; second piece can be worn as cardigan, wrapped around the waist or draped across the body. Necklace from Metro. Shoes, stylist’s own.​​​​​​​

“I’ve seen people who, when they travel, wake up at 4am to get their face on and head to a tourist spot just so they can take beautiful pictures without people in the background. For influencers, it’s a job and it’s work, so they do that, and I admire their professionalism and commitment. But that’s not something I would do if I were on holiday!”

Two-piece Shirt Dress ($79 pre-order; regular price $109) with separate piece for multiple looks.

Pre-order your dresses here.

Photos: Aik Chen
Styling: Lirong assisted by Reyme Husaini
Hair: Reno Tan, HAIRLOOM
Make-up: Airin Lee
Jasmine Sim is an AHA Artiste.

Catch Jasmine in Kin on Ch 5 every Monday to Friday at 8.30pm, and on video-on-demand on Toggle, and My One In A Million, which debuts July 22, 9pm on Ch 8.